On June 20, the ‘Lecture and Concert to Commemorate the 74th Anniversary of the Jeju 4·3 Uprising’ was held in Nippori, Tokyo. The ‘Group Thinking about the Jeju Island 4·3 Incident-Tokyo’ (hereinafter referred to as “Meeting Tokyo”), in which Zainichi Jejuns, Koreans, and Japanese citizens gather around the Zainichi Korean novelist Kim Seok-beom, has been promoting Jeju Island in Japanese society every April since 1998. There was an event to announce the 4·3. In 2020, due to the sudden aftermath of COVID-19, the memorial service to be held in April was replaced with an online study session in November, and the event had to be canceled last year. Up to now, Tokyo events have included the meaning of commemoration in various genres such as lectures, concerts, plays, and rites related to the 4·3. When the event was canceled last year, it was an event that had not been skipped for over 20 years, so there were a lot of concerns, but I decided that the ‘Tokyo-down’ event was difficult due to Corona 19. I had to ponder until the very end as to whether or not to hold a face-to-face event this year, and after I decided to hold it, I calmed down with a short preparation and publicity period of a month and a half. It is an event in Tokyo that attracts at least 400 guests every year, and I was very worried about how many people would participate in a face-to-face event for the first time in three years. Fortunately, Japanese Ambassador Kang Chang-il attended, and in Korea, foundation officials such as Koh Hee-beom, chairman of the Jeju 4·3 Peace Foundation, and the 4·3 Bereaved Association and Jeju Provincial Government officials took a long step. And still, welcome guests from Japan came to the event.
Why should Japan remember the 4·3?
